1. The Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of computer networking. In particular, embodiments of the present invention relate to systems and methods for identifying and connecting with the most efficient wireless access point.
2. The Relevant Technology
Computer and data communications networks continue to proliferate due to declining costs, increasing performance of computer and networking equipment, and increasing demand for communication bandwidth. Communications networks—including wide area networks (“WANs”) and local area networks (“LANs”)—allow increased productivity and utilization of distributed computers or stations through the sharing of resources, the transfer of voice and data, and the processing of voice, data and related information at the most efficient locations. Moreover, as organizations have recognized the economic benefits of using communications networks, network applications such as electronic mail, voice and data transfer, host access, and shared and distributed databases are increasingly used as a means to increase user productivity. This increased demand, together with the growing number of distributed computing resources, has resulted in a rapid expansion of the number of installed networks.
As the demand for networks has grown, network technology has grown to include many different physical configurations. Examples include Ethernet, Token Ring, Fiber Distributed Data Interface (“FDDI”), Fibre Channel, and InfiniBand networks. These and the many other types of networks that have been developed typically utilize different cabling systems, different bandwidths and typically transmit data at different speeds. In addition, each of the different network types have different sets of standards, referred to as protocols, which set forth the rules for accessing the network and for communicating among the resources on the network. Historically, a majority of installed networks utilize a wire-based communications medium. That is, the interconnections between computers and peripherals are accomplished with elaborate wire and cable-based connection systems. Depending on the size and type of network involved, the cost, installation, maintenance and upgrading of such networks is quite complex and requires sophisticated skills. Moreover, even the physical space needed for today's wire-based network systems can be prohibitive.
One solution to some of the drawbacks of wire-based connections is the use of short range wireless communication schemes to interconnect computers and computer peripherals within a network. The use of wireless communications provides a number of advantages, including the elimination of complex, expensive, and inconvenient wire and cable-based connections. A number of wireless communications standards have been developed for such applications; two popular examples are known as IEEE 802.11 and “Bluetooth.” Both standards use low power radio frequencies to allow communication between various devices such as mobile phones, laptop and desktop computers, printers, modems, PDAs, and the like.
One of the main drawbacks of wireless networking is the limited transfer rate of wireless network connections compared to wired network connections. Because of this limited transfer rate it is important to maximize the efficiency and reliability of data transfers between wireless devices. The data transfer rate is slowed if the wireless signal is interrupted or disconnected between two wireless devices. Wireless devices only have a specific range and therefore if a user moves out of range the wireless signal between the user's device and another device may be interrupted or disconnected. To ensure that a signal is not interrupted within a specific area, most commercial wireless networks incorporate multiple access points with overlapping coverage areas to ensure that there are no dead spots within the network in which a user would be cut off from the network. The limited transfer rate is further slowed when there is an overflow of data traveling through one particular wireless device such as a wireless access point. The problem of overflow is commonly resolved by simply increasing the overall capacity of the network such as by using access points that are configured to communicate with multiple appliances at one time. This solution is expensive and still causes an inordinate amount of data to be transferred through a single access point while other access points remain underutilized.
Therefore, there is a need for a solution to these and other problems associated with the connection scheme used between wireless devices. In particular, it would be an advancement to provide a solution that ensures that every wireless device within a wireless network is communicating in the most efficient manner possible. Therefore, when a wireless device is given a choice to connect with one of a plurality of different access points, it should connect with the most efficient access point. Preferably, the configuration would be substantially automatic and transparent to the user, and occurs in a manner that does not require significant software resources to be downloaded to the computing device client. Moreover, such an approach would not require any specialized skills or knowledge on the part of the user.